phobia

1 of 2

noun

pho·​bia ˈfō-bē-ə 

: an exaggerated usually inexplicable and illogical fear of a particular object, class of objects, or situation

-phobia

2 of 2

noun combining form

1

: exaggerated fear of

acrophobia

2

: intolerance or aversion for

photophobia

Examples of phobia in a Sentence

Noun

His fear of crowds eventually developed into a phobia.

Recent Examples on the Web

Noun

Even Heinz made a joke on social media last year about the superstar’s phobia, posting a photo of a bottle of ketchup labeled Heinz 97 (referencing McDavid’s jersey number) — instead of the traditional Heinz 57 label on the bottle. —Adam Lichtenstein, Sun Sentinel, 10 June 2025

Noise-sensitive dogs, particularly breeds like border collies and Australian shepherds, may have a genetic predisposition to noise phobias. —Maria Azzurra Volpe, MSNBC Newsweek, 2 June 2025

By the bloody end, your phobias now include fire escapes, elevators, airbags, construction sites, even backyard barbecues. —A.a. Dowd, Vulture, 19 May 2025

Indeed, their results revealed that personality traits account for around 25 percent of the differences in people’s overall risk of mental health conditions, and for around 25 percent of the differences in people’s specific risks of specific disorders, from depression to anxiety to phobias. —Sam Walters, Discover Magazine, 2 May 2025

Word History

Etymology

Noun

-phobia

Noun combining form

New Latin, from Late Latin, from Greek, from -phobos fearing, from phobos fear, flight, from phebesthai to flee; akin to Lithuanian bėgti to flee, Old Church Slavic běžati

First Known Use

Noun

1786, in the meaning defined above

Rhymes for phobia

• agoraphobia
• claustrophobia
• homophobia
• hydrophobia
• photophobia
• xenophobia
• rhizobia
• phobia

Kids Definition

phobia

noun

pho·​bia ˈfō-bē-ə 

: an unreasonable, abnormal, and lasting fear of something

Medical Definition

phobia

noun

pho·​bia ˈfō-bē-ə 

: an exaggerated and often disabling fear usually inexplicable to the subject and having sometimes a logical but usually an illogical or symbolic object, class of objects, or situation compare compulsion, obsession